Spanish bishops respond to adoption of twins by lesbians in Navarre

Madrid, Spain, Feb 17, 2004 / 22:00 pm

The Spanish Bishops Conference has responded to a recently revealed unpublished decision by a judge in the Navarre province which granted authorization for the adoption of twin sisters by a lesbian couple, saying that when homosexuals are given to right to adopt children, the right of minors to have a father and a mother is not respected.

“The lack of a father and a mother always causes difficulties in personality development. This lack, which is aggravated in the case of homosexual unions, demands an even greater effort by the child solidly establish his normal sexual identity,” said Fr. José Antonio Martínez Camino, secretary of the Bishops’ Conference.

Fr. Martínez denied that homosexuals are discriminated against by not being allowed to adopt children, saying that “we should instead think that the adopted child is the one unjustly treated in these circumstances.”

“Children have an unrenounceable right to have a father and a mother.  If under normal circumstances this is not possible, they should be provided an environment which most reflects a natural family.  In this case we believe a child’s right to a father and a mother is not being respected,” he warned.

Referring to the problem of children who suffer the temporary separation and absence of their parents because of divorce, Fr. Martínez said it “is an unfortunate and problematic situation for children, but that does not mean we are going to create new problems by making choices that ignore education and the rights of children.”

A family judge in Pamplona used existing laws on couples to justify a ruling in favor of granting a lesbian couple the right to adopt two 1 year-old twin sisters, which one of them conceived by artificial insemination and carried to term.  The case has become the first instance of adoption by a homosexual couple in Spain.